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I mean, I cannot believe - with all the stuff going on, all the stuff that went on, all the stuff that has been going on - this guy has people defending him.

He's like a politician that people stick by no matter what scandal they are in just because they dare not disturb the self-made reality that they wish to live in.

Agreed!

Originally Posted by EtherianChronicles

Scott has FAILED. He has FAILED at keeping promises - where is my sub page, SEVEN MONTHS after it was taken down "for a few weeks"? Is he the one coding the page? Probably not - but the people who do work for him and his brand. SEVEN MONTHS and they cannot get a simple web page to work. An entire feature film can be shot, a novel written, a child can go from birth to crawling in that time - yet they cannot get a sub page up so we can update a credit card.

Agreed. It's embarrassing!

Originally Posted by EtherianChronicles

You know, when I first started collecting this line two years ago now, I saw the complaints about him (oddly, the same complaints you hear now - nothing has changed) and I thought, "What a bunch of wackos". And then, little by little, I saw it. And by SDCC last year, when he pulled the "fake-out" lists, I started to really see through it. And seeing promise after promise, month after month, and then screw up after screw up - I realized they were right.

Yeah, sadly, me too...

Originally Posted by EtherianChronicles

It's the same song and dance, guys - it's just that TG is blowing a new tune because this time, his job (and all of MattyCollector, as MOTUC is the flagship) is on the line. So he's pulling out every trick in the book. For the sake of the unmade characters, I hope he succeeds - but even if so, that does not erase what a terrible, awful, inadequate, and downright offensive ways in which the man has done it.

I want MOTUC to continue too... but I also want people to start holding Scott accountable for his "promises" and "statements"! As a PAYING customer, I don't think that's in any way unreasonable!

Oh man, tell me everything but not that! I'm Italian and that's the exact scenario we have been living for years!
There's a difference though: politicians are all talks and little substance, while all the MOTU I got thanks to Toyguru are pretty concrete
Oh, and this 'defence' is coming from one who is gonna pay hell for those figures next year (provided we get any) because of new pricing, new shipping, 100% custom on a single figure as a consequence of those increases, and on top of that new no-refund International Post policy!

So the price has gone up, you are going to pay way more for customs now, and if it gets lost in the mail, you don't get your figures and Mattel doesn't care.

2012 sub sales were already down from 2011 sub sales. They already knew interest was weaning. And they knew they were going to have to increase prices.

IMO, their best move would have been to scale the 2013 sub back to just one item per month. They could have made Ram Man a $30 item one month in place of the $25 monthly figure. The Fighting Foe Men should be nixed. They’re neat. But not at the expense of ending the line. They could have made just one of them as a monthly figure.

Bottom line is this toy line is costing more than people can/will commit to. One item per month would have been a good compromise to keep the line going.

Last edited by FAKER II; July 22, 2012 at 10:34am.

"There's only one Master of the Universe and it's He-Man." - Stephen Colbert

"The heart has its reasons of which reason knows nothing." - Blaise Pascal

200x got cancelled prematurely, yet people flocked back to Classics not long after.

I wasn't necessarily referring to MOTU in particular, but in any case that's not completely true. First off, 200X ended in 2004. Between the end of 200X and MOTUC there was the stactions line, intended for collectors to complete what hadn't been done in the toyline, unfortunately, it sold less and less with each consecutive wave. If I remember correctly a lot of people were indeed hesitant to start with MOTUC because the other two lines had disappeared rather quickly, leaving them behind with incomplete collections.

Also the first three figures took months to sell out, you could basically buy a figure whenever you wanted. MOTUC started out with a broad base of customers and for some reason systematically narrowed it down, squizing the remaining fans for every penny until the majority could no longer afford it. They have eliminated potential customers by forcing guaranteed sells, by limiting the availability of the product to new fans, by not fixing QC problems, by outpricing the product for international fans, etc. They haven't tried to keep it healthy, instead they let it die slowly in order to milk their loyal customer for as long as they could.

If a company cancels a line outright it doesn't generate goodwill amongst their customers, but now Mattel gets praise for giving the fans a chance to save their line and if the minimum's not met they can still end it because of a lack of fan support.

But hey, what do I know, I'm obviously a Conspiracy Theorist™

"A knight is sworn to valor. His heart knows only virtue. His blade defends the helpless. His word speaks only truth. His wrath undoes the wicked."

What's Mattels Plan B, if it's close to the end....

Well after posting my question in Val's ask TG a question for RGD about the subs, made me think this should have its own thread for discussion. So we have been feed that Mattel loves this line and wants to see it prosper. We have seen in TG's recent video that for the last 2 Years Mattel has Ben pay partial shipping for international buyers. Mattel has also been eating partial production costs for the last few years. Which for a huge company like Mattel to do that if true is amazing. They are a company to make money, not be a good guy especially for that long to loose that much money and say the line is fine and beyond that. But I'm not trying to say TG's latest video and statements are false or fraudulent. I hope they are as true as he makes them seem. For the sole reason that Mattel dose care about this toyline and it's fans and and wants it to survive

And then that brings me to my question..What's the Plan B? Of in fact all these statements are true why stop now. Why compromise something that is making everyone happy. Continue it for as long as it shall make a profit. If for the last 4-5 years they have been profits back into the line for it to excell then they want this to stick around.

I agree with TG when he said about raising the Sub a buck a year. It would have more than likely went over better with everyone easier. I'd say the same with the international shipping. And a huge company like Mattl would have an entire floor dedicated to something like this. Whether it would be legal, advertising, marketing, or the guy that shines there shoes. Again im just trying to put some of this together to understand why all of sudden there's no love to support there baby.

Back to my question. So what will Mattel do now that they're making there full profit, and not losing anything. Why stop now. Every figure sold is a penny made. When this line was started it was based on sharing parts and we have seen that. So I can't seem to understand how each figure costs the same to make as the next. It has been clear if you read TG blog Mattel cheats with the figure budget by making new parts or sculpts for future figure and accessories and that's fine every toy company does it. But thats another foot in the mouth for me.

When we see from Mattel and Toy Guru there Plan B to help save this extremely dear toyline that means so much. Why not extend the Subs till the absolute last minute. Why not throw out the names of which is penciled in for the remainder of 2013, with a disclaimer card subject to change. Why not implement a pre order or start to look into it. Why start MattyCollector.com, an online toystore if theres no Day of Sale. And further no figures available. Why be afraid of having stock of figures that will in no doubt sell out whether its in 6 minutes or two months. Why not advertise. I'd rather have a white front of the card with just a motuc logo and some advertising to keep the line alive.

Where's the fight from your side Mattel. why are you giving in and giving up. We the fans have delt with a lot of bad things along the line more turbulence then circling around the rocks for 3 hours. Give us some hope from your side of this. Give us some light that will help understand that your not givi g up as well.

So again Mattel, What's your Plan B. and please be as sincere as possible.
Thanks.

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It's your place for Freedom of Speach for everything MOTU, POP, TMNT, , Horror, Wrestling, DC and Batman, and all other properties that are cool.
Is is now up and live please check it out and spread the word please!!!

So the price has gone up, you are going to pay way more for customs now, and if it gets lost in the mail, you don't get your figures and Mattel doesn't care.

Yup, sounds like a great relationship to me.

Exactly as you said.
But one cannot get always things like he'd like to be, and if there are good reasons behind those increases (and thanks to my work I'm in the market enough to strongly believe those reasons are there) telling it's all TG's fault would be like telling lies to myself.

There is no fight from Mattel's side, they don't care about a toy line, if it's not making them money....

Scott already said if the subs are not met, we may only get the last few tooled figures for 2013, then be dumped like we never mattered.

I would seriously hope they would have more love for the line, it's one of their oldest original lines, I believe only Barbie & Hot Wheels to be older, and consistently around in some way.

But their love of money outweighs their love of their brands, sadly....I do hope the 2013 subs can pull the line though, even though the sub only rhetoric is growing tiresome. Even so there are other outlets to get figures for non sub buyers, and if I do not choose to for another sub, after this one, it's fine by me I'd only need a couple more necessary figures to be happy anyway....But it's sad everyone can't collect a toy line the way they want to....that fact is very stupid, and part of the reason we're in this mess in the first place, if Mattel left the DOS buyers alone, we'd still be good to go, I know it's only a part of the problem, but it is a nice sized part.

If I didn't frequent message boards, I would have absolutely no clue that there were "problems" with this line. I always ordered MOTUC day-of, I may subscribe this year. Never had an issue. I had a slight problem with my DCIE sub at the beginning of the year, but it's been resolved.

I think a big problem is that every person's little problem or complaint gets collected and condensed into one place, making the problems seem a lot bigger than they actually are.

Guys, nobody's perfect! You would rather dump on Scott all day than offer up any ideas or suggestions. Fact is, he repeatedly puts himself out there and by all indications works hard for his money. We could argue how the system is flawed or the policies are bad, but let's not question the guy's dedication. Like other people have said previously, I don't know of any brand manager that is as quickly identifiable or as accessible as Scott is.

He may have dropped the ball on a number of things, and as far as I see it a certain amount of faith has been lost. Some of that could be expected in a line like this. It doesn't mean we can disrepect him. Scott, if my posts have gone that way with you I apologize. Tensions are high and sometimes my brand of humor isn't called for. Likening him to a wife beater could be just a bad joke if it's tongue in cheek, but I get the feeling you guys are out for his head. In that case, grow up. These are toys!

If I didn't frequent message boards, I would have absolutely no clue that there were "problems" with this line. I always ordered MOTUC day-of, I may subscribe this year. Never had an issue. I had a slight problem with my DCIE sub at the beginning of the year, but it's been resolved.

I think a big problem is that every person's little problem or complaint gets collected and condensed into one place, making the problems seem a lot bigger than they actually are.

Trust me, you have been lucky. I used to also think that problems reported were exaggerated but then I made the horrible mistake of transitioning from Cherry Picker to Subber and got burned right at the start of the year. It's been problems ever since; getting a sub was a bad mistake and I only did it for Shadow Weaver.

Plus there is more to this than just problems with the line. It isn't just about one or two things that have people so annoyed.

I have always gotten 2 subs, but today I must only get 1. The cost is getting too crazy for me. As for TG – he sounds very sincere in what he is saying, but matty is NOT losing money – that is BS. Every time a corporation says something, it’s false. I have worked in several offices and I know the routine.

Having said that I have been very happy with the line and what I have been getting, my only issue is that this is the CLASSICS line – not the “lets make a character the four horsemen want to” line.

I mean I want the classic guys in there. I think most problems can be fixed by this simple solution:

1 – only make ONE FIGURE A MONTH! – I don’t need 3 different guys costing 30 bucks to ship when only one of them is a classic character I care about. I am willing to accept other figures, especially from POP and New Adventures, and one of the best things about this line, is that you are getting a lot of cool characters!! And they are all very well made (for the most part). I am also thankful to matty for bringing this line back to at least us, the collectors and fans. I can honestly say that I LOVE MOTU in all forms and have since I can recall my first memories as a child.

2 – If you want to include no reason figures that’s fine, but make them extra. So ONE FIGURE A MONTH period. And maybe every 2 months you can have a bonus figure – battleground teela, green goddess etc. I would definitely get all those figures too.

OR

1 – Make ONE FIGURE A MONTH and have it be a classic guy, or POP, or New Adventures or Filmation etc, and then every second month make it a non classic guy etc.

I mean that keeps the line going longer and fans don’t have to spend as much in one go etc.

Hoffman, well said. I would be oblivious to the "problems" if it weren't for these forums. If you want to enjoy MOTUC it almost seems unhealthy to be be here at this point. I may have to come back when the wave of negativity is over- as excited as i was for upcoming figures I can't help but feel my enthusiasm waning after reading all of these posts.

Guys, nobody's perfect! You would rather dump on Scott all day than offer up any ideas or suggestions. Fact is, he repeatedly puts himself out there and by all indications works hard for his money. We could argue how the system is flawed or the policies are bad, but let's not question the guy's dedication. Like other people have said previously, I don't know of any brand manager that is as quickly identifiable or as accessible as Scott is.

He may have dropped the ball on a number of things, and as far as I see it a certain amount of faith has been lost. Some of that could be expected in a line like this. It doesn't mean we can disrepect him. Scott, if my posts have gone that way with you I apologize. Tensions are high and sometimes my brand of humor isn't called for. Likening him to a wife beater could be just a bad joke if it's tongue in cheek, but I get the feeling you guys are out for his head. In that case, grow up. These are toys!

These may be toys but we are Paying Customers.

We have been consistently treated like crap by Scott/Mattel and several of us feel disrespected as paying customers. We've had enough.

Hoffman, well said. I would be oblivious to the "problems" if it weren't for these forums. If you want to enjoy MOTUC it almost seems unhealthy to be be here at this point. I may have to come back when the wave of negativity is over- as excited as i was for upcoming figures I can't help but feel my enthusiasm waning after reading all of these posts.

I hear both of you. The vast majority of the problems that have people so up in arms are things that I would never have noticed without the griping on the boards. Ironically, I feel like one of the main reasons that we get so much negative feedback here is because this toyline is almost unique in having a head representative who frequents the boards and communicates with fans-- every gripe, legitimate or perceived gets posted and there is the expectation that it will be fixed, and if it isn't fixed to the satisfaction of the poster's opinion it becomes teh end of teh lien. Unfortunately, by being so approachable, I think Scott may have engendered this sort of behavior here on the boards.

Scott's performance stopped being opinion a long time ago, just check the history of this board for the past two years.

True.

Originally Posted by Inhibitor

Guys, nobody's perfect! You would rather dump on Scott all day than offer up any ideas or suggestions.

Yeah, but he's the Brand Manager! It's his job. He gets paid to do it. I just want him to start being accountable for what he says!

Originally Posted by Losgar

Hoffman, well said. I would be oblivious to the "problems" if it weren't for these forums.

Good for you I'm always happy to hear that people have had no problems. My only counter to your statement is to ask whether or not you bought King Hiss, Roboto, Snout Spout, Goddess, or Swift Wind for starters? They all had well documented widespread QC or assembly faults (even Scott acknowledged them!) not exclusively discussed on these forums. That's to say nothing of the Fisto Sub debacle earlier this year, or the on-going DR problems... I'm not sure how anyone has avoided those...

everyone gets so wrapped up in politics and complaining that they forget what this is about... the toys.

I love my toys. Every month I get them in the mail and it's awesome! I used to Cherry pick, then I realized that I wanted everything anyways! I hated dealing with DR and the White Screen of Death (that we caused using multiple computers and browsers) so I bought a sub. I haven't been happier. Would I have bought figures like Horde Prime or Demo-Man or the Star Sisters? No. But I am very glad I got the sub and got them anyways. They turned out to be awesome figures. MOTUC and the Horsemen are freaking awesome!
Now, forget the internet, forget the complaining, forget the politics. Go look at your toys and ask yourself, "do I want more of these?" Check out Ram Man and Jitsu and ask yourself, "Do I want these guys in my collection?"
These toys are awesome and I want more!

Hoffman, well said. I would be oblivious to the "problems" if it weren't for these forums. If you want to enjoy MOTUC it almost seems unhealthy to be be here at this point. I may have to come back when the wave of negativity is over- as excited as i was for upcoming figures I can't help but feel my enthusiasm waning after reading all of these posts.

I know it gets difficult at times. I myself bailed from active posting on the boards after the 200X line ended because everyone just seemed so depressed and started blaming everything and everyone they could (including each other.) I went into lurker mode. I will say, in hindsight, I regret that because I also missed out on a lot of good stuff.

I'd just recommend people look at who is posting. A lot of times, the people with more measured posts will just post their opinion once, whereas the people who are more passionate will post their point over and over across multiple threads. If their opinion is not favorable of something, it can cause it to feel like the board as a whole is a overly negative place. That's not to denigrate the people who are posting opinions that aren't favorable, it's just to keep things in perspective. I say that as someone who has been on both sides of the passionate versus more measured equation.

As much as I might personally wish people would make their point and move on sometimes, you also don't want to create an atmosphere where people feel like they can't post if they have something bad to say. I wouldn't want to be a part of a forum where you could only ever say nice things about something, because that forum would no longer be a community, it'd be a Borg collective. Sometimes very positive change is born out of people posting about how they don't like something. For instance, I'd call Snake Man-At-Arms a definite win in this department. As long as it doesn't get personal about posters or creators, we should be able to have an open discussion.

I think the thing to do is if a thread or sub-forum feels like it's getting too negative, focus your energy on a different thread or sub-forum. Before being a mod, I had been known to take a sabbatical from the Classics forum entirely and just focus on the Fan Art and Other section.

My one worry about people posting the same point over and over is that it might create an unpleasant atmosphere for people who don't feel that way, as though they don't have a legitimate space to think otherwise. I hope people don't feel that.

I do hope Mattel will re-assess and offer a more flexible option for international fans.

They have 2 options now, how many more do you want? International shipping is not cheap and what they are charging for ordinary USPS air mail is actually still below counter prices at the post office. The biggest complaint that I see is that international buyers are upset about "if it gets lost no replacements". To be honest, I am shocked they DID offer replacements when people chose non-trackable shipping. We all know the risks when choosing the cheap shipping, it just becomes a problem when you cheap out and that parcel goes missing. Instead of blaming ourselves for being cheap we make it the senders fault.

I'd just recommend people look at who is posting. A lot of times, the people with more measured posts will just post their opinion once, whereas the people who are more passionate will post their point over and over across multiple threads. If their opinion is not favorable of something, it can cause it to feel like the board as a whole is a overly negative place. That's not to denigrate the people who are posting opinions that aren't favorable, it's just to keep things in perspective. I say that as someone who has been on both sides of the passionate versus more measured equation.

This is definitely true. A few months ago, I started noticing how certain posters kept hitting the same talking points ad nauseum, where it got to the point that anytime I saw their avatar I pretty much already knew the content of their post. I started using the ignore function, and it's made for a happier board experience for me.

Now, forget the internet, forget the complaining, forget the politics. Go look at your toys and ask yourself, "do I want more of these?" Check out Ram Man and Jitsu and ask yourself, "Do I want these guys in my collection?"
These toys are awesome and I want more!

Yeah I want more. But I also want the freedom to buy which ones I want, not be stuck with stuff I DON'T WANT. I want to pick and choose, like I do with every other thing in my life. That's why their decision to get rid of DOS stock is ridiculous. My money is just as good as a Subber's for any one particular figure! Even if, over a whole year, I'm just the icing on the cake... they're still getting EXTRA $$$ from me (and countless others, including Subbers who buy extras!).

Guys - I'm just going to state this once. Please do not compare problems with collecting a toy line with being a physically and/or mentally abused woman. While I understand you may not understand the offense your words can cause, understand that for some posters this could be a very real issue for either themselves or someone they love.

Yeah I want more. But I also want the freedom to buy which ones I want, not be stuck with stuff I DON'T WANT. I want to pick and choose, like I do with every other thing in my life. That's why their decision to get rid of DOS stock is ridiculous. My money is just as good as a Subber's for any one particular figure! Even if, over a whole year, I'm just the icing on the cake... they're still getting EXTRA $$$ from me (and countless others, including Subbers who buy extras!).

No, your money is not as good as a subber's because by buying a sub a subber is commiting to a whole year contract and providing the money that budget the whole line and yes, that allow people like yourself to cherry pick the particular figure you want. By the way, you are welcome...

Offering $2,500 for MOC or AFA graded Teela and Zodac 8 backs with "He-Man and the Power Sword" mini comic

Stop the concept stuff and go back to the roots of the line: NOSTALGIA.

Release a decent line-up for 2013. You've said that things are 'locked in' but then you say you can't release the list because 'things can change'. Make your mind up.

Release the list - have it include some heavy-hitters - Glimmer, Hydron, Flogg, Scorpia, Evilseed, Queen Angella, as well as the expected MOTU selection of characters: Snake Face, Clamp Champ, Mantenna and Modulok.

If the other oversized characters are risky, CHANGE THEM. You KNOW who we want.

Scott, you have the power to save this line. Do whatever you need to in order to do it.